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It wasn’t so much that Retasu disliked being in Kouda’s room. After all, it was where his bed was, and where he ate, and was plenty interesting on it’s own.
It was just that he considered himself to be a free range rabbit, born to explore the confines of his Boy’s world and beyond. He had been beyond the door a good number of times, taken to some group study sessions where he got to meet Kouda’s hutchmates. Retasu liked the student with the droopy ears, and the one who accidentally made him float that one time.
Some floating would be nice right now , the rabbit thought as he stared at the handle of Kouda’s door.
His Boy had left the window open, and Retasu could smell blood.
He thought of himself as a rather intelligent animal, all things considered. He had lived long enough to recognize the smell of sickness. As Kouda’s rabbit, it was his responsibility to do what he could for his Boy’s hutchmates. So, the clear answer was to investigate the source of the smell and see what he could do.
If only I could get beyond this dratted door. The rabbit glared at the handle. Perhaps . . . I might be big enough to reach. He hopped over, standing on his hind legs as his front paws scratched at the handle. Just a little further . . .
He gave the tiniest bit of a hop and his paw caught the edge of the handle. His weight as he fell was enough to turn it, and he couldn’t help the smug accomplishment he felt as the door swung out into the hallway.
His hop from Kouda’s room was triumphant.
The elevator, however, posed a new set of problems.
The stairs were clearly out of the question. He simply wasn’t big enough, or strong enough, to push the doors open. He huddled in front of the doors, grateful that his Boy and the other students had class for several hours yet.
With a sigh, and a series of particularly impressive hops, Retasu tried to jump high enough to hit the button he had seen Kouda use, the one that looked a bit like a fat, inverted carrot. The edges of his nails always just clipped the edge, however, and he was left glaring in full rabbit-fury at the button.
I wonder if a bit of a running start would help. Willing to try most anything Retasu backed up and flew forward, jumping vertically just before running into the wall. He jumped just high enough to decisively click the ‘up’ button. He fell back to his feet feeling absolutely elated.
Thankfully the buttons on the inside were lower down, so he could easily press the button that was excessively squiggly. Kouda called it a ‘five,’ but Retasu was a bit skeptical that such a strange looking number was used as often as his Boy said it was.
The elevator opened with a *ding,* and Retasu hopped out onto the hallway carpet of the fifth floor.
The smell of blood was strong now, coming from somewhere to his right. He hopped over to the nearest door, which was slightly ajar. He paused at the threshold of the doorway, not daring to enter the dark room until a rasping cough and a dull groan came from it’s depths.
Retasu hopped into the room, his wide hips brushing against the door and making it swing just a bit. His eyes took in the bundle of blankets on the bed, covering a worryingly thin human. The curtains shifted as a light breeze pushed through the open window.
“Who’s -” The figure on the bed moved and groaned, the edge of the blankets twitching. Retasu took a hesitant step forward, one paw poised just above the wooden floor. The figure coughed, and the scent of blood was suddenly a lot fresher.
Alright, how do I get up there? The lip of the bed was too high. Some other way had to be found. Perhaps . . . there! Some discarded clothing had been left at the foot of the bed. Retasu hopped over, taking the brief leap to the top of the pile before again judging the distance to the top of the bed. He only hesitated a moment before making the jump.
The bed was covered in a thin blanket that was bunched around the figure’s feet. The human was curled up, breath rattling in it’s chest. A rather unruly tuft of blond hair sprouted from it’s head, which rested on a towel that had long ago been stained an ugly brown. Retasu made his way to the head of the bed, stopping just in front of the human’s face.
Ah. This is one of Kouda’s teachers. The man seemed pale, except for the shadow of his eyes and the smear of blood at the corner of his mouth.
The man blinked, and the rabbit was surprised at the points of blue in his eyes. “Oh. Hello.” The voice had a painful rasp that made Retasu’s ears twitch. The bunny took a small hop forward, sniffing at the man’s feverish forehead. “And where did you come from?”
I am the rabbit of my Boy, Kouda. Retasu, finished with his examination, gently pushed his head under the man’s chin. I could smell the sickness from two floors down. What’s wrong?
The man gave a wet cough and shifted, trying to push his torso off the bed. He peered at the open door before looking back down at Retasu, who had stood up on his hind legs and was intensely examining at his hair. “. . . am I hallucinating?”
Before Retasu could answer the man suddenly collapsed, gripping his midsection and coughing. Retasu jumped to the side, but he was too slow to avoid his paws getting sprinkled with the blood the man spat up. . . . oh dear.
The fit passed quickly and the man was left wheezing on his bed, arms limply gripping his torso. His eyes were clenched shut.
You . . . you really aren’t feeling well, are you? Retasu hesitated a moment and then pressed his nose against the man’s neck, one paw moving to gently rest on the man’s clammy shoulder. That’s okay. Rabbits help most everything, Kouda says, and he’s a smart boy.
The man gave a breathy sigh, cracking his eyes open to peer down at the bunny. One of his hands twitched and reached up to gently pat Retasu’s back.
You have really long fingers, Retasu said, enjoying the way the man started to gently run his hand through Retasu's fur.
The man seemed more at ease, now, as he rubbed his thumb between Retasu’s ears. His breathing was evening out and his eyes were slipping closed. The hand paused on Retasu’s back. “Good rabbit . . .” The voice was hoarse, but the bunny could tell that the man was falling asleep.
You sleep now, teacher. Retasu hopped around to the other side of the man, flopping over and pushing his back against the man’s neck. I’m here.
Retasu returned to Kouda’s room a while after the man had fallen into a deep sleep. As he hopped through the open door his eyes found his Boy, who was currently on his knees looking under the bed.
Kouda looked up with a jolt, relief on his face. “Retasu, where have you been?!”
The rabbit twitched his ears and hopped over to his Boy. Around. This building is larger than it seems.
“Is - is that blood?” Kouda’s voice went very quiet as he looked at the paws of his rabbit.
Your teacher is sick. I decided to pay a visit when I smelled the blood.
Kouda froze, then sagged against the leg of his bed. “. . . oh.”
He seemed better by the time I left, though. More at ease. Retasu sniffed at Kouda’s hand, whiskers twitching against the thick skin. Kouda absentmindedly started stroking the rabbit’s head. He will recover, right? He gives nice scratches.
Kouda smiled, though he still seemed down. “He won’t get better, at least not completely. He . . . he got hurt, a long time ago. He hurts a lot, and some days are worse than others.”
. . . I see. Well, when he is feeling better please give me a proper introduction. I think I surprised him a bit.
Kouda gave a little laugh, then sighed and got to his feet. “Well, here. I’ll wet down some paper towels and help get the blood off.”
Thank you. The smell is a bit bothersome.
“I’ll bet. And the next time you want to visit someone, just ask, okay? You really worried me."
I'm sorry. That wasn't my intention.
"I'm just glad you're not hurt, and that All Might is feeling better. Speaking of which, can you tell me how on earth you managed to get up two floors to his room? And don’t tell me that you ‘jumped,’ either.”
Retasu twitched his ears, happy and smug at the same time. It wasn’t that hard, actually. Never underestimate taking things one hop at a time. The rabbit hopped next to Kouda’s feet, following his Boy to the floor bathroom. Besides, I had a job to do.